Getting Better at Giving Feedback

You mean well. It's said with the best intent. Which is why it feels like you’ve been blindsided when it backfires.

Giving false praise leads to confusion, fall out, and challenges in giving feedback.

Every time you say "Great job!" when what you should have said was "Thank you for getting the job done" you set yourself up to fail in future conversations. 

Those are the hard hitting facts right out of the gate, but I'm willing to bet most of us default to saying "Great job!" throughout the day, but do you mean it? Was it really a great job? Did that person go above and beyond? Or did they do the job they were hired to do?

I could keep writing words to describe what I'm talking about, but I think it would be more helpful to watch the video because sports gives us a very clear picture of what accurate praise and feedback sounds like. 

Let me just reiterate that you don't do anyone any favors by giving false praise.

I remember a well-meaning stadium employee who was saying "Great job!" and "Great effort" to Seahawks players entering their locker room after a terrible loss. The team didn't play well. They missed a number of opportunities. It was the exact opposite of a great job. I remember the employee saying to no one in particular, "It's important for those guys to be encouraged." What that employee didn't notice was the death-stares he was getting by players who knew they hadn't done a great job. Instead of encouraging them, he was pissing them off. 

That's one example of how false praise backfire. Here's another:

Your words won't have meaning if you don't mean what you say. 

I mentioned this in the video but if you are in the habit of handing out the same compliment like "Great job!" or "Great idea!" you will run into a problem when someone goes above and beyond. When your employee exceeds expectations. When the sales team shatters revenue goals. What do you say then? "You did a really great, super duper good job!" doesn't cut it. 

You're also going to run into a problem when it comes time to deliver pointed feedback. The person on the receiving end is likely to feel blindsided after hearing "Great job!" over and over again only to discover it's not actually true. 

Here are two things you can do right now to get better at giving feedback:

1. Pay attention to the way coaches talk about outcomes and individual performances. The accountability stats and scores provide make it easier to tell the difference between doing a great job and doing the job you were asked to do. As a result coaches and managers are very good at giving accurate praise and feedback during press conferences and interviews. 

2. Be intentional with the words you choose. Give some thought to an alternative response to "Great job!" It could be any number of things including: 

• Thanks for getting the job done!
• I knew I could count on you to do the job!
• You delivered exactly what we needed!

There is nothing wrong with getting the job done or doing your job. It is not a criticism. You can acknowledge that effort with enthusiasm. It's important to get the job done and it's extra special when someone goes above and beyond and does a great job.